Why not dance in the rain?

Book by Hyannis author encourages children to embrace life It does rain in Hyannis, you may have noticed.

So you might like to know that a Hyannis resident has written a book, Let’s Dance in the Rain, Josh, which she hopes will help children face their fears. The book, said author Mary Munsell, “is a part of a whole journey for me.” She said that it’s “like a conversation with Joshua,” her son, who lives with his father in North Carolina.

Munsell said Joshua, the youngest of four siblings, suffered serious injuries at the age of 8 when hit by a car. Josh, the main character of her book, is patterned on her son.

“The theme of the book is an issue I come across with a lot of people. They’re afraid to come out in the rain,” said Munsell. The story she has written offers “a strong message of beginning a journey. People bring a lot of guilt on a journey.”

Munsell said that the title and theme of her book was inspired by the author Vivian Greene, who wrote that, “Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s about learning to dance in the rain.” Munsell said that she hopes she has written “a book that you can use” to help address children’s fears about “dancing in the rain.”

“I never dreamed to be a children’s artist,” said Munsell, but once she had the image of dancing in the rain ,“I wrote [the book] in like two days.”

The character Josh, offered an invitation to dance in the rain, invents excuses not to try, such as “Sunglasses! I need sunglasses to keep my eyeballs from getting wet.” Munsell said that she means to warn her readers that “your umbrella might get in your way” if you try too hard to protect to stay dry.

Does Munsell dance in the rain, literally, herself? “No,” she admitted, but the leap of faith in writing and illustrating Let’s Dance in the Rain, Josh, certainly qualifies as her own risky venture.

Munsell said that she works with a peer group of people who deal with mental illness. Known as The Resource Connection, the group meets at 45 Plant Road in Hyannis Mondays 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Wednesdays 1 to 4 p.m., and Thursdays 10 a.m. to noon. The group is connected with the Recovery Learning Community, she said.

The book, Munsell said, is a way for her to relate to her son, to “touch him, and to feel his breath.” She said in a press release that her son, despite his injuries that have caused “ so many physical and cognitive challenges, “will tell you that he is a lucky boy and that he has a great life.”

The same press release added, “Because of Joshua’s enthusiasm, during the roughest times in my life he has taught me that everything doesn’t have to be just so before I can have fun.”

A press release from her publisher, Tate Publishing and Enterprises, says Munsell’s book is available at bookstores, from tatepublishing.com/bookstore, or from barnesandnoble.com or amazon.com. The author says the soft cover costs $8.99, and there are audio, e-book, and coloring book editions. Munsell, who often adds, “Always remember to dance in the rain” when she signs her name, can be reached at danceintherain-recoveryinmotion.com or at 508-367-6488.

Or simply head out into the next Hyannis rain and kick up your heels. The book’s character, Josh, says he can’t because “I will need so many things.”

But Josh’s mom, crafted by a real Hyannis mom, coaxes him to forget his worries and just dance in the rain.